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Towing Travel Trailer

14K views 41 replies 10 participants last post by  Big Blue 
#1 ·
Been a while since I posted a pic. Been doing lots of camping this summer towing a 24' travel trailer that's about 5k pounds with gear. Commander has been a champ going up steep mountain passes. No upgrades in a while except a couple 4.5 gallon Rotopax I strap to the top (not in this pic). She only gets 9 to 10 MPG when towing and I thought about installing a bigger fuel tank but the Rotopax are a fine solution.
 

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#3 · (Edited)
My wife and I are headed out to Wyoming and Montana next week. We tow a small camper regularly with our Commander. When we travel often we head to some very remote wilderness areas where fuel is not available. I put a 12 gallon boat fuel tank on the roof of my Commander and have a quick disconnect hose and valve that I use to fill the Commander, generator and small trail bike I carry on the back of our camper.

We are headed to some very remote areas in the Wind River Range and also the Absoroka Mountains this year. Our camper is a Jayflight Baja high clearance so we can take it on some pretty rough roads to setup base camp.

Last year we drove about 200 miles of the original wagon road of the Emigrant and Oregon Trails. We crossed a lot of sand washes and quite a few creek crossings through South Pass and the Lander Cutoff. I attached a picture near South Pass out in miles of nothingness - A lot of history way out there and you can really get the feeling of what those pioneer families experienced way back. Dan

The picture didn't load so I posted it in the following.
 
#21 ·
This is really interesting. Did you travel in 200 miles and then travel back out on a full tank and your auxiliary tank? Kinda scary going completely in the wilderness knowing there is no fuel anywhere out there. Glad you made it back without incident. We were in Montana last week for vacation. Of course, we flew, so it wasn't a big deal. I talked to a couple of people that hunt with their mules and they told me they carry a locator called the SPOT tracker (I think) that is used when people go in the wilderness and is a lifeline if they get stranded or get lost. Do you carry something similar?
 
#5 ·
That's awesome, I'd love to do some exploring off the grid. We have kids ages 2 and 6, and for now the standard campgrounds are our thing. Maybe when the kids are older....

I've seen the Jayflight Baja, that's a nice little camper. We started out with a similar sized single axle, a Coachmen Apex 15X which was about 18' and under 3K lbs dry. We decided to trade up to a slightly bigger camper - a Salem Cruiselite 201BHXL. Bunk beds for the kids, bigger water tanks and extra space really make a difference, not to mention that it's totally enclosed vs. fold out tent beds of the Coachmen. We thought we'd like the fold out beds and feeling more connected to the outdoors, but campgrounds can be noisy and being enclosed is better. What was interesting is the the heavier Salem Cruiselite with 2 axles tows more smoothly than the lighter Coachmen Apex single axle. Neither would be suitable for getting to remote places though, and we'd need something more like your camper for that.

Next we'll be headed out to the North Cascades again, and then down Oregon and Crater Lake for a 9 day trip in August.
 
#8 ·
Here are a couple of more interesting pictures. This place where the trail splits is called, The Parting of the Ways. It was at this point that the pioneers had to make a decision to go towards Fort Bridger and on to Salt Lake or take the Sublette Cut off. Pioneer families that traveled together for many weeks or months would decide at this point which way to go, splitting up friends and even couples who became acquainted during the voyage. One way was shorter but much more difficult with less water and food for the animals the other way was longer more mountainous but water and food was easier to come by. Some would go to Salt Lake and stay others would part and go onto Oregon. All that parted ways here would never see each other again. It was a solemn place and many tears were shed here. The original hand carved trail marker stone is still here (see picture).
 

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#9 ·
Man, that's crazy!
Thanks for the info on towing, guys! I've recently been reading through old towing threads on here and people's varying experiences, etc. We're soft-shopping for a smaller toy-hauler, preferably no bigger than 24ft, and we prefer to travel in my Commander (vs. the wife's Nissan Titan). So I've been extra curious about how well it'll do long term.
Even the comment about a single axle trailer vs a dual axle...didn't think that'd be as much of a difference on shorter (like, under 27ft) trailers.

We rented a 22ft Forest River Wildwood 2 years ago and pulled it down to Johnson Valley, CA for the King of the Hammers desert race and took it through part of the Sequoias on the way back up. Towing speed limit in CA is 55, so I rarely tried to keep speeds over 60 or the occasional 65 and the Commander did pretty well. High cross-winds in the desert was pretty sketchy, but I guess the short wheel-base is to cause of that. I got about the same gas mileage as you, about 9 or 10mpg... :laugh2:
 

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#11 · (Edited)
Man, that's crazy!
Thanks for the info on towing, guys! I've recently been reading through old towing threads on here and people's varying experiences, etc. We're soft-shopping for a smaller toy-hauler, preferably no bigger than 24ft, and we prefer to travel in my Commander (vs. the wife's Nissan Titan). So I've been extra curious about how well it'll do long term.
Even the comment about a single axle trailer vs a dual axle...didn't think that'd be as much of a difference on shorter (like, under 27ft) trailers.

We rented a 22ft Forest River Wildwood 2 years ago and pulled it down to Johnson Valley, CA for the King of the Hammers desert race and took it through part of the Sequoias on the way back up. Towing speed limit in CA is 55, so I rarely tried to keep speeds over 60 or the occasional 65 and the Commander did pretty well. High cross-winds in the desert was pretty sketchy, but I guess the short wheel-base is to cause of that. I got about the same gas mileage as you, about 9 or 10mpg... :laugh2:
That's a pretty big trailer; Nice pic.
 
#10 ·
We were think of a family trip down to the Sequoias this summer, but with the 9 mpg that we get towing I found my self planning the fuel stops more then the fun stops. Decided to put off long haul trips until I can get a Aux tank.
 
#14 ·
Plenty of gas all down Hwy 99, the main North/South route on the West side of the Sierras (besides I-5). 99 goes back and forth between 2 and 3 lanes each way. We took the main way in on Hwy 198, however once you get into the park you can't take trailers over a certain length past a certain point in the park. There's lots of signs and the Park Rangers at the gate will make sure you know. I don't remember what their length limit is, but I'm sure it's all over the websites. We stayed at the Potwisha Campground, which was real nice and not too big. No hookups, though- power, water or sewage. It's right next to one of the rivers and some trail heads. Also there's a free dump station and fresh water fill right across the street, so you can plan to tow dry! The pic in my last post on this thread is in that campground.
 
#24 ·
I have a group of outdoor enthusiasts that I spend time with and the way we'll typically use it is when we are meeting up for an organized camping/expedition, one guy will typically arrive a day or 2 ahead of everyone else, secure a location for base camp & set-up camp;

Then that person, will send a SPOT text message with the LAT & LONG of base camp to the rest of the group, so other people who may not be familiar with the area, can easily navigate to the base camp location without getting turned around or lost.
 
#26 ·
#27 ·
I put a 12 gallon boat fuel tank on my roof onto of a rubber pad when I go off road any great distance. I have the squeeze bulb hose with a hose and ball valve on the end. I simply put the hose in my gas tank and squeeze the bulb to get the fuel going and the fuel siphons into the tank. Very easy. See the picture:
 

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#28 · (Edited)
That's actually an excellent idea @bdalameda - and they make them bigger than that, I've seen tanks like that as big as 20 gallons. An extra 20 gallons of gas would give you all the range you need; Heck, even 12 gallons extra is plenty of fuel;

I'm quite certain that you can custom make a hose long enough to reach the main gas tank while that external tank remains in the roof rack once you get the gas flowing, gravity will do the rest;

Simple & effective; That has my vote - thank you very much for sharing that, I appreciate it;


 
#37 ·
A third option is a no thrills, no subscription, ResQlink by ACR. It's only a GPS enabled personal rescue beacon, but durable and water proof. Not real cheap and you do need to register it with NOAA. I Always have it in my backpack.

https://www.acrartex.com/products/resqlink-plb
 
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#39 ·
A third option is a no thrills, no subscription, ResQlink by ACR. It's only a GPS enabled personal rescue beacon, but durable and water proof. Not real cheap and you do need to register it with NOAA. I Always have it in my backpack.

https://www.acrartex.com/products/resqlink-plb
Even though it's about $40.00 more expensive than the SPOT-X Messenger, you'd more than make up for it with all the money you'd save not having to pay for any monthly/yearly subscriptions; the trade off is it doesn't give you any other functionality, other than being a beacon locator; if you are only concern is SAR, that's really all you need in the grand scheme of things;

However, I'd bet the majority of people would prefer to have the piece of mind that comes with two-way communication and having the ability to openly communicate with the people that are looking for you. It's a nice option though.
 
#40 ·
It's nice to be able to check in at home when I am away from cell service. Being able to receive messages from home is also a nice feature. When I am out in the wilderness by myself I often send my wife an email or text to let her know I am ok. She can click on the link that accompanies the message and it will open up a map and show my exact location.
 
#42 · (Edited)
I still have some time to decide; It will be either SPOT-X or Garmin InReach; I have several of other Garmin devices, so, I know they work well - their price plans are on the expensive side though.

I also have a couple of Iridium Satellite phones here where I work, so, I'm very familiar with the superior coverage of the Iridium Satellite network.
 
#41 ·
Well, I kind of like what this conversation turned into. For the record, my family has two high medical needs persons in it. Unfortunately, it's bad enough we cannot leave cell phone range while hiking.

Once we have the funds, I will be purchasing one of the more expensive Garmin units to take along with us when we go into the mountains. I've done some research regarding the satellite networks and their capabilities and will stick with the Iridium devices.
 
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